Ireland’s Deposit Return Scheme (DRS) has experienced rapid adoption in its first six months of operation, according to Re-turn.
The operator of the scheme has revealed that Irish customers have returned over 347 million containers since the launch of the DRS, on 1 February.
Public support for the scheme has been growing over the past six months, with significant rises in the number of bottles and cans returned each month.
In February, the first month of the scheme, two million containers were returned.
This number has dramatically risen to an average of 3.2 million returns daily in the month of July, totalling over 102 million returns for the month.
In line with the growing adoption of the scheme, the Re-turn network of Deposit Return drop-off points has grown by more than 870.
There are now over 2,500 reverse vending machines (RVMs) and 323 manual return points nationwide.
Adoption And Habits
A key goal of the DRS is to educate consumers on the benefits of separately collecting and recycling PET plastic and aluminium drink containers, rather than disposing of them in home recycling bins or general street bins.
By returning all in-scope containers to one place through the scheme, consumers are enabling the collection of a higher quality of recyclate material than through dry mixed recycling.
The separation allows for the continuous recycling of aluminium and enables plastic bottles to be recycled up to seven times.
According to a recent survey by Re-turn, some 84% of consumers have now used an RVM since the scheme launched, and support for the scheme currently stands at 74%.
Over half of consumers (59%) bring their empty drink containers back in a bag or box used to collect containers at home.
Some 36% bring them back whenever they do a grocery shop.
When RVMs or staff members issue vouchers, one in five (20%) customers opts for cash back, while 62% redeem their vouchers immediately against grocery purchases.
‘Immediate Impact’
At the six-month mark, the chief executive of Re-turn, Ciaran Foley, said, “We have seen incredible engagement with the scheme during its first six months in operation, particularly considering that this included a four-month transition period.
“The immediate impact, as shown in the recent Irish Business Against Litter survey, has been more than we could have anticipated.
“The nationwide research found that almost 30% fewer cans and 20% fewer plastic bottles are littering streets.
“It is fantastic to see these results in just the first six months of the scheme, and we are expecting these figures to rise.
“We have also seen tremendous participation among community and charity organisations, including schools, GAA clubs and TidyTowns groups, who have been collecting containers as part of their fundraising efforts.
“Over 140 community and non-profit organisations across the country are now working with Re-turn to carry out fundraising efforts, which we are supporting by providing facilities and advice for each project.
“While I believe we have come a long way, we are continuing to explore new ways to grow the adoption of the scheme, in the interest of the environment and communities across Ireland.”
Return For Children
As well as running the DRS, Re-turn has launched a charity initiative to benefit six children’s charities.
‘Return for Children’ gives consumers attending events such as Electric Picnic or Taste of Dublin the option to return empty containers to designated Re-turn bins.
Re-turn then donates the deposits for the containers equally between the six charities.
The organisations receiving the donations are Barnardos Ireland, Barretstown, Childline by ISPCC, the Jack and Jill Children's Foundation, LauraLynn Children’s Hospice, and Make-A-Wish Ireland.
Read More: Re-turn Reports 300m Containers Returned Since Start Of DRS
